114 Journal New York Entomological Society. [Voi. xxvi. 



Mr. Davis exhibited the list of New York State Lepidoptera by Dr. 

 Forbes and spoke on " Some Interesting Cicadas." His remarks were illus- 

 trated by distribution maps and eight large boxes of specimens, containing 

 i6 species of Cicadas from Texas, New Mexico and Arizona, collected in the 

 summer of 1917 by Mr. Harry H. Knight and Dr. Joseph Bequaert of the 

 Cornell Biological Expedition. An account of these insects was published in 

 the December, 19 17, number of the Journal. He also exhibited four species 

 of Cicadas collected in the early part of 1917 by Mr. E. B. Williamson, of 

 Bluffton, Indiana, along the Magdalena River in Colombia, S. A., and two 

 species collected at Suretka, Costa Rica, by Mr. Alanson Skinner and Mrs. 

 Skinner, in April, 191 7. In the collection made by Williamson Proarna in- 

 signis Dist. were represented by 127 females and but 2 males. Many of these 

 came to light. Mr. Skinner had a like experience at light, collecting 54 

 females and but one male of Proarna championi. A box of miscellaneous 

 insects collected in Costa Rica by Mr. Skinner was also shown. 



Mr. Sherman, under the title " Entomological Literature " exhibited many 

 rare old books among which were the 



F. V. Melsheimer Catalogue of 1806, 



Say's American Entomology of 181 7 and 1824, 



Say's Descriptions of New Species of 1829, 



Catalogue of Animals and Plants of Mass. of 1835, 



Provancher's Coleoptera of Canada, 



Lepidoptera Cubana of Gundlach, 18S1. 



All of these were copies of unusual interest from their excellent condition 

 and accompanying autographs and letters of Say, Gravenhorst, Harris, 

 Edwards and others. Peal's original portrait of Say was also included. 



Mr. Sherman gave an interesting account of the causes that make such 

 books valuable, primarily their intrinsic merit, leading to a demand for them, 

 then their date, the destruction of copies by fire or constant use, the original 

 small edition published, sometimes their status as part of a series, giving 

 examples of each class. He referred to the presidential address by Mr. 

 Schwarz (Proc. Ent. Soc. Wash., II, 1891) as an excellent presentation of 

 the facts respecting the earliest American literature, and spoke of the expe- 

 dients, such as photographing pages needed, reprints, as of Kirby's and Say's 

 works, for supplying demand for some of special importance, and said the 

 value of certain books, of which few copies were available though their merit 

 made their acquisition imperative, like Packard's sth Report and LeConte's 

 Classification, was rapidly advancing. 



Mr. Dow mentioned a list of insects in the History of New Hampshire 

 which from its early date deserved a place in Mr. Sherman's list. 



Mr. Woodruff after speaking of Mr. Williamson's illness in Pittsburgh 

 gave " Notes on Some Local Dragon Flies " illustrated by specimens. He 

 called attention to the uncertainty with respect to the identity of the nymph of 

 Lanthus albistylus Hagen, and the fact that in Muttkowski's Catalogue nota- 

 tion is made that the nymph is unknown. After presenting such evidence as 

 was available, he offered as his conclusion that Hagen had himself described 



